Magnitude
by Mir Queen
Summary: From one small battle, Carlisle and Jasper develop a bond that has been missing since Alice and Jasper first entered the Cullens' lives and one that will carry Carlisle through a time of crippling fear. *canon pairings*


Disclaimer: I do not own _The Twilight Saga_. It belongs to Stephenie Meyer and Summit Entertainment, etc. I make no profit from this writing.

A/N: A one-shot I simply had to write. I was inspired by the fight scene in the _Breaking Dawn Part I_ trailer. It's a little bit AU, I guess, so bear that in mind. And I don't really care if this seems unlikely. :P I am a fanatic of hurt/comfort stories between Carlisle and his children.

I suggest the song 'Melody of a Fallen Tree' before or during reading.

**Magnitude**

* * *

><p>The fight had begun.<p>

My family and three new allies, pitted against Sam's pack in a battle over the life of my daughter and granddaughter. When Sam would not accept our easy explanations of Renesmee's existence, Jacob had threatened that he would have to be gone through before anyone touched Bella or Renesmee.

But Sam was not listening. He had made up his mind to destroy my grandchild. And if all else failed, he would die in the attempt at protecting his tribe from the enemy who was not an enemy at all. The futility of this entire war made my heart ache. Someone would die somewhere tonight and while I prayed it was not one of my own, I had little doubt it was a high probability.

Clashing, clawing, biting, and snarling rang out in the meadow in front of my home, echoing loudly in my ears and piercing the depths of my soul – that indefinable thing that Bella was so certain of me possessing.

I could not feel sympathy for these boys, no matter how much I wanted to. Sympathy would get my family killed. That was not something I could handle. Instead, I buoyed myself with all of the love and strength I felt towards my wife and children and – though I would never have guessed it – grandchild. If that did not focus me… if the many glorious memories I had of my family did not keep my mind determinedly fighting, then nothing would.

Shrieking growls of pure agony reached my ears then, mixed with the despicable sound of marble limbs wrenching apart like two pieces of solid steel. This was it. Someone had paid the price for our lack of foresight. One of my beloved family was being taken down. Grieving already for that precious member of the family, I threw Collin roughly from my body, his enormous form flying harshly through the trees, and turned to see which dear soul had been stolen from us.

What my startled eyes appraised mere feet away, was the sight of a familiar golden head of hair, curled in defensively on the arm that was hanging by a mere thread from a shoulder - an arm that yet cradled a leg that had been half-chewed through. Other damage was visible once one got past the shock of the overall attack… a wide tear on the spine and a hand dismembered completely, as well as large bites on an elbow, a knee, and a bicep.

Jasper. Our _Jasper_, the strongest and most skilled fighter we had, had been taken by surprise and his body ripped apart as payment for his attempt at circumventing the wolves onto his own skill… all to protect the rest of us.

Anger, deep and intense and totally unlike me, flared at the idea that these children were able to catch my strong son off guard and attack him mercilessly because he made the mistake of protecting his loved ones. Barely had Alice cried out incredulously for her weakened husband, than did a furious howling, snarling sound erupt from the depths of my throat. I became an unrecognizable warrior, eyes blacker than midnight, ready to tear apart the fool who hurt my child. My limbs moved into an unfamiliarly powerful mode of offensiveness, fingers curled into claws and back tingling in anticipation of a sudden leap at my enemy.

In the midst of the fierce battle, silence abruptly reigned, fighting stopped, growls and snaps ceased. Almost every wolf and vampire in that clearing turned my way, but I stared at the one wolf whose eyes were trained single-mindedly – not on me – but on Jasper's shivering body. Sam, who focused so strongly on Edward at first, had assuredly realized how much more dangerous of an opponent Jasper was and took that burden on his own shoulders rather than endanger his pack members.

With Jasper out of the way, Sam had no doubt imagined the rest of us would be easier to handle; an easy fight once the strategist was gone. He would pay for his negligence, now. While I recognized deep inside that my feelings would sicken me later, all I knew in that moment was that my son was in pain. And the beast that had caused it was standing still, only feet away from me, a clear target.

How fitting this fight would be… Leader against leader. Alpha versus Father. But an alpha, while responsible for his pack, could never rival a father's protection for his child. Fatherhood went beyond obligation and ventured into the realm of love.

The stillness broke as Sam, apparently under the impression that Jasper was still the greatest threat even in his debilitated state, stalked forward to finish the job. No mercy, then? Red haze clouded my sight. Every ounce of militaristic training and advice Jasper and Eleazar had ever given me flew through my mind like a catalogue.

Sam's jaws opened and he reared like a cobra to strike down upon Jasper's unprotected head.

With a frightening roar I never knew I could produce, I launched myself across the distance between us, shoving my arms up unexpectedly into Sam's exposed throat with every ounce of force I had. In a single blow, the black wolf catapulted like a twister into the nearest cedar, the force of impact breaking the entire tree in half and sending the heavy wolf's body down onto the thick, wet grasses below. The upper portion of the tree tumbling over into its fellows in the forest echoed across the landscape.

The haze had not yet cleared from my mind as I positioned myself in a protective crouch between Jasper's tortured body and the five more wolves standing around my family and three allies. Alice was shaking with rage and horror, Edward's iron arms keeping her safely caged until the fight recommenced. Leah stared at me with muted pain, but at least her dim love for Sam was not enough to send her attacking.

The other wolves, although probably strong enough to take us on still, remained mute with shock. Even Paul's growling was quiet. My actions proved to them only too well how much they underestimated us. I could almost see the thoughts in their minds… Perhaps they would all fare the same as Sam and their mission would end in defeat? Was it even worth it to continue?

Low groaning reached us from where Sam fell, the man himself stumbling drunkenly out of the high grasses until he dropped again to his knees not three feet ahead of where he began. For a long moment his incredulous, uncertain stare was the only thing that encompassed my vision.

"You would fight for him, rather than for yourself?" he asked in amazement, breaking the wordless atmosphere. From the corner of my eye, Collin stepped into view, clearly ready to back up his leader in spite of his own uncertainties about my strength.

My feral nature was at its peak, yet I somehow found the strength to speak like the man I tried my best to be.

"He is my _son_," I snarled, limbs trembling in expectation and emotion, "and you have caused him great pain. I will _not_ let you do so again."

Without warning, Sam began to shake and change, his body shifting into the huge shape of his wolf form. Prepared for a new attack, I tensed forcefully, but Sam did nothing. He stood still, turning to look at Jacob intently. Jacob shared the meaningful gaze for barely a minute, but it seemed to be enough. Something shifted in Sam's eyes so subtly that I could not understand its meaning.

The only thing keeping me still was Edward's concentrated gaze. All of sudden, his dark eyes cleared and he actually smiled, albeit wanly. Jacob relaxed, too, and I found myself reluctantly following suit. Sam barked an authoritative command at his pack, having to repeat himself much more strongly in the case of Paul and Collin, but nevertheless they all turned and disappeared into the woods, leaving only a broken tree and Jasper's quiet groans as testimony to our battle.

"What the hell just happened?" Emmett half-shouted, jaw stretching down to the dirt in his surprise. Rosalie appeared equally nonplussed by his side, arms crossed and eyes narrowed at Jacob, switching between him and the house suspiciously.

Edward exhaled sharply in relief, sagging a bit. "Carlisle's protection saved us all. Only when Sam was forced to stop and think a moment did he consider what Jacob told him about the imprinting. If Renesmee is suitable for a wolf imprint, then she must not be a danger. And he also saw that Jacob gave me permission to change Bella. Sam can't actually dispute that, so the treaty remains in tact from our side."

"So if Carlisle hadn't freaked out," Emmett summarized in his blunt manner, bringing up a morbid sense of humor within me, "then Sam would pretty much have kept attacking until he killed us all? Is that about everything?"

"Yes, Emmett," Edward chuckled a little, mind obviously beginning to wander to Bella now that the danger was past. "That's about everything."

"So we're safe now?" Esme verified hesitantly, eyes darting around us in apprehension.

"They won't attack us again," Edward said, smiling at his mother. "It's going to be fine."

The confirmation of our safety sapped all of the fighting energy out of me. My body melted right down to the ground, my legs practically collapsing beneath me. The violence I had entertained haunted my mind now. Edward turned a concerned eye my way, but I was of no mind to argue my guilt or innocence yet.

"Let me go now," Alice finally breathed agonizingly, leaning as far from Edward's grasp as she could towards her beloved. I moved away so that Alice could heal her husband, respecting the bond between them as something private that I did not need to intrude upon.

Edward's arms, however, did not relax.

"No, Alice," was his firm reply. "Jasper needs Carlisle right now."

"What?" Alice snapped her head around to stare at Edward. All of us did, as a matter of fact.

"Jasper needs to bond with his leader," Edward murmured gently, doing his best to soothe Alice's indignant hurt by pulling his sister a little closer. The circle of his arms was less like a cage now and more like an embrace. "In a normal coven, Carlisle's actions would mean even more than they do in ours. The leader doing something of this magnitude for one of the coven members would be extremely significant of their connection to each other. The lack of such an action may have been one of the reasons Jasper has never been as close to Carlisle as we all are."

These thoughts, new to my ears, halted me in the midst of trying to debate the point myself. Had that been why Jasper never turned to me when he needed help? Edward had been his go-to point whenever he faced difficulties in our lifestyle and I had often thought that it was a similarity in disposition that brought it on. But now… Was it truly negligence on my part that pushed him to ask another's advice instead?

"That's not what he thinks," Edward argued with my thoughts. "He doesn't think you were negligent, just that you didn't know it was something he needed. If it happened, he would welcome it. If it didn't, he wouldn't begrudge you your lack of knowledge."

Alice looked like she wanted to argue, and indeed she might have, if Jasper's groaning did not increase in volume. I quickly realized that much longer without reattaching his limbs and sealing the wounds, and Jasper's venom would start to eat away at the exposed bites in an attempt to seal it over. That was a process that could not be stopped, as far as I knew. While it would not kill him to be essentially disintegrated, it would be weeks before his body completely reassembled itself. And the process would be nearly as painful as the original burning.

"Please, Alice," Edward pleaded warningly. "Jasper doesn't have much time before his body self-destructs. You saw it happen to Peter."

Shuddering at some memory, Alice nodded jerkily. With her eyes, she begged me to care for her husband and I could only nod as Edward pulled her firmly into the house and up to Bella. Seth and Leah dispersed into the trees without a sound and Jacob headed around the back of the house, presumably to change into the clothes that were always laid out there before he headed inside to see Renesmee. Rosalie immediately headed in as well, no doubt to hold Renesmee before Jacob reached her. Emmett dutifully followed and left only Esme, who gently reached out to take my guilty face between her hands.

"You did _nothing_ wrong," she told me forcefully, eyes fierce with love and pride. "I am so proud of how you defended our son. And I love you. Now take care of him."

A soft, forgiving kiss for my lips and she was gone, too. Shaking off my contemplation, I rushed to take care of the wounds Jasper sustained, starting with the hand he'd lost from his good arm. Jasper had been in so much pain that his hand was immobile, not even moving to reattach itself. It made me worry for his mental well-being, no matter his violent history.

"I'm sorry for the pain, son," I apologized to him quietly, reaching for his detached hand. I aligned the now-twitching hand, ignoring the flinches and sounds of pain as best I could. Rapidly, I dipped my head to clamp the wound and allow venom to flood the seam. Jasper thrashed at the sudden influx of acidic fluid, but held himself relatively still for the unhappy five minutes it took to seal the injury in its entirety.

Hazy though Jasper was from the process, his relief at the reconnection of hand and arm was palpable thanks to his gift. Realizing how little my son was projecting his own pain filled me with a sense of pride. Even in his weakest moment, Jasper kept control of his power.

Moving to seal his arm gave me pause. Helping him to attach a part of his body that he couldn't seem to move was one thing, but my next gestures would lead me to see all the scars on his upper body. Those were things I was certain only Alice had seen. And more importantly, perhaps Jasper, in his disconnected state, would think I planned to bite him further? I didn't want him to grow wary of me out of instinct.

Still debating the point in my head, my eyes caught his, half-opened though they were. It took a moment to comprehend that what resided in those glazed depths was trust.

Like that, the matter was settled, and I confidently pulled a wincing Jasper to lean against me so I could assess the gruesome tear at his shoulder. I found it helpful that the arm was connected underneath, rather than at the top; my teeth would fit right around the shape of his shoulder. Sighing a bit at how much more painful this was going to be than the attachment of his hand, I steeled myself before clamping down and again flooding the injury with venom. Jasper's thrash was much more violent this time, seeing how close I was to his throat, and we ended up sprawled for a moment, my teeth still firmly attached to his shoulder and my hands gripping his torso so as not to tear the wound again.

The five minutes it had taken to heal a hand were nothing compared to the fifteen grueling minutes it took to seal up the shoulder. When I pulled back, Jasper looked more exhausted than ever and I felt my confidence waning.

Taking a deep breath, Jasper spoke at last from where he leaned against my own shoulder, his voice muted, but sure. "You're doin' fine. It's always tirin' for our bodies to heal such deep wounds."

"Which one is the worst now?" I questioned him, bolstered while hoping I hadn't done the wrong wound first.

"Left leg," he winced slightly. "Right above the knee."

Nodding my understanding, I moved out from behind him to seal the leg the same as the others. It took a little less time, thankfully, and I was relieved to see his appearance improve somewhat.

"Least I can move now," Jasper grumbled vaguely, rolling to lie on his back. His movement exposed a vivid, gaping, six-inch-long tear running just above his abdomen. My eyes popped at the sight, causing Jasper to snort slightly, though it was strained.

"Trust me, damage to the trunk isn't nearly as painful as the extremities," he assured me.

"Shall I?" I gestured to the wound in question, still stunned.

"Please do," he nodded a bit, cringing as the movement aggravated his other damages. "Quickly, if you don't mind."

"Certainly," I agreed rapidly, ripping the shirt away to have better access.

Based on how fast the tear healed, I was beginning to believe Jasper about damage to the trunk of the body being less of an ordeal. However, it wasn't the speed of healing which caught and held my unflattering attention. The sheer number of scars all across Jasper's torso had me cringing inside, but frozen on the outside. My God, what this young man had been put through! I had imagined terrible things, but nothing like what I saw now. The vestiges of protectiveness that I had felt when attacking Sam reared up of a sudden, startling both of us with its intensity.

"Forgive me," I muttered uncomfortably, remembering that Jasper was a highly independent creature who did not want pity.

"It's fine," he muttered back, sounding thoughtful.

"Why are these smaller flesh wounds not healing?" I wondered aloud as a distraction. "They should have sealed almost instantaneously."

"It's the wolves," Jasper answered, still in that pensive tone of voice. "Their teeth have some sort of coatin'. It's like venom, but I think it's only dangerous when it gets mashed into vampire wounds."

"Should I have removed it from the other wounds before I sealed them?" I asked in abrupt panic, pivoting to face him with alarm written all over my features.

"I guess your venom flooded the coatin' away from my injuries." He shrugged gently. "At least they feel better. I can't imagine they'd feel better if it was still in there."

"I suppose so," I agreed uncomfortably. "We should hurry to heal the other damage before the venom backfires on you."

Nodding, he turned to allow me access to his spine, the tear there being the next most dangerous one. It was a breeze to heal the remaining injuries, so simple I could feel my attitude improving with each one. Unless it was merely Jasper's ability doing that; I wouldn't have put it past him.

As for Jasper, he already looked normal, save those ebony irises and the state of his clothing. If her mood was any better, Alice would kill me for the destruction. Jasper's jeans were ripped off just above the knees and his shirt was only a collection of tatters on the grass. Morbidly amused, I snorted quietly to myself.

"Alice has some clothes set out for me, probably." Jasper smirked a bit. "I nearly get ripped apart and she still worries about fashion."

"Don't say that," I whispered, pained at the idea of losing one of my children.

"Sorry," he responded contritely, expression rather guilty. "That _was_ inappropriate of me."

"I suppose I should be glad you feel like joking about it," I admitted, "but we could so easily have lost you."

"Not with you around," Jasper remarked rather oddly. "…I'm going to go change."

"All right."

Watching me closely for a minute, Jasper then hesitantly spoke. "I doubt we'll be goin' huntin' much for a few days. After Bella is settled… would you hunt with me?"

"Of course," I agreed immediately.

Days later, after having watched so many amazing things go by and worrying for Jasper when he had darted into the trees to rethink his perspective, I now stood waiting on the porch with a bag of clothes in hand, courtesy of a much happier Alice, who decided Jasper could not be trusted to keep them on hand if he was going to hunt. When the vampire in question appeared beside me as agreed on that morning, he eyed the bag with vast amusement.

"Alice's insurance?" was his dry query.

"Something like that," I agreed blandly.

Frowning at my lack of enthusiasm, Jasper just nodded at the trees and took off running. Immediately catching up to him, I just let him lead me where he would. By the time we reached Canada, I wondered if hunting was truly his idea. Or merely distance from the others for a time of bonding, as Edward had said. Considering the number of clothes Alice had packed in the bag I held, it was a reasonable assumption.

Jasper stopped suddenly, in the middle of nowhere in the Canadian wilderness, not a single heartbeat or scent within range of our senses. Turning to face me, he told me with his expression that he knew I had begun to understand.

"Is this the part where we arm-wrestle over a boulder?" I suggested, in much better humor after the freedom of our long run.

Jasper actually snickered, remembering all too well Emmett's tries at male bonding when Alice and Jasper had first joined the family. An arm wrestling match was subdued enough that Jasper wouldn't have felt awkward about his past, but still wild enough to satisfy Emmett. Well, at first glance. Emmett had not been happy about losing. How Jasper managed that, I still didn't know. Adding in Bella's successful contest with Emmett recently, the analogy was quite humorous.

"You don't strike me as the arm-wrestlin' type," Jasper finally remarked, a strange look on his features.

"I suppose not," I chuckled, dropping our clothes bag to the ground and alighting on a nearby tree that must have fallen during a storm some months prior. "What 'type' do I seem to be, Jasper?"

"I'm not entirely sure," he confessed, face becoming more pensive as he stared at my relaxed posture and curious gaze. "Honestly, I've never really thought about it that much. You just accept people so easily. No one feels the need to make a back-bendin' effort at breakin' the ice with you. Hence why I never attempted it. I knew, even without the gesture Edward told you about, that you would accept me as I was. Alice didn't even have to tell me that one. You made it clear by the emotions you felt toward us that first day."

"I'm glad you knew that," I hesitantly accepted his reasoning. "Although I'm not sure I like the idea that I am so isolated from sharing interests with others."

"That's not what I meant," Jasper frowned. "But I admit it can be difficult to share an interest with someone who finds bein' around humans such an easy task. You do so many things that I don't think I could ever do. Not with my lack of control."

"You underestimate yourself, as usual," I sighed a bit sadly, interweaving my fingers in thought. "If you had more faith in yourself, I believe you could do a great deal that you don't think you are capable of."

"Alice must like quotin' you," he snorted, taking a seat next to me on the fallen tree. "Not that I mind, but…"

"You disagree with our philosophy," I finished for him. Eyeing me with appraisal, he nodded.

"I know you believe in me," he went on to say, gratitude in his voice. "But after livin' the way I did, I have a hard time seein' that faith for myself."

"Isn't that always the hardest part?" I laughed lightly. "If all we had was our own self-confidence, few people would ever succeed at anything. I would not have my family if that were the case."

"You didn't depend on anyone when you changed Edward," Jasper said confusedly. "It was all on your own faith, wasn't it?"

It occurred to me that Jasper only had a perfunctory account of my initial history with Edward. Enough to get on with, but nothing too personal. Edward had been very wary of Jasper at first and I respected that. By the time Jasper had been accepted fully, none of us had thought to go into any more detail.

"Elizabeth Masen showed her faith in me first," I explained simply.

"Edward's mother?" Jasper asked in vivid surprise. "She knew what you were?"

"I never knew for certain," I admitted. "But Edward thinks she may have had a very good idea. She was a superstitious woman, and yet extremely practical. It is an odd combination, but it makes for a very perceptive creature."

"How did you know her?" Jasper leaned forward, far more interested than before.

"Edward's father was ill with the Spanish influenza," I began to tell the story, feeling comfortable with the familiar tale. "I can only guess that Edward and his mother came down with it thanks to their visits to the hospital, because mere days after admitting the elder Edward, both of them were admitted as well. Elizabeth was worse off than her son, no doubt because of the times she stood to care for him in spite of her own ill health. I knew it was not good for me to become attached, but something about them was so compelling. I was drawn to them without ever having met them before… When Elizabeth was dying, she begged me to save Edward as only _I_ could do. I promised her, but doubt flooded me. Yet even in death, it seemed she was waiting for me to fulfill my promise. Her face did not seem at peace until I decided to take Edward as my companion and wheeled mother and son to the morgue as if they had both died."

There was silence for some time following my story, except for the small creatures rustling in the earth and the wind in the trees. After what appeared to be weighty contemplation, Jasper spoke in a troubled voice, "Edward's really never trusted me, has he?"

"What?" I asked in surprise. "What do mean? Of course Edward trusts you."

"Then why didn't he ever…" Jasper seemed unable to continue, appearing ashamed of what he must have considered a childish reaction.

For a moment I was speechless, unable to determine what explanation Jasper would trust the most. A memory, however, of one special night in our household set my path for me.

"Do you remember the night I gave you that band?" I inquired softly, laying kind fingers on the family crest he wore on his left wrist.

"Can't forget it, now can I?" he half-smiled, but bewilderment took precedence on his face. "Why?

"Do you know who suggested it was time to give it to you?"

"Edward?" he wondered hesitantly, the words rife with doubt.

"Yes, Edward," I nodded once, voice strong with conviction. "It was an ordinary night when he suggested it. Well, as ordinary as we ever have in our family…"

Jasper chuckled with me over that truth.

"Edward came to me at work, just as I was going to leave," I moved forward. "I remember him telling me all about the game the rest of you were playing back home. It was nothing significant, but it struck him how strange it would be if you were not there. You had become such an integral part of our home that he almost didn't realize his own acceptance. His own trust in you. So we went over to the jewelers and had the band made that morning."

"Then why didn't he tell me his story?" Jasper asked, continuing to doubt even as hope lit his face. "I gave him all of mine, even the parts I didn't fully tell to Alice. I thought it would garner his trust if I did, yet he never did the same."

Feeling badly for my troubled son, I made sure to word my reply very carefully. "Jasper, by the time Edward accepted you, he had long since forgotten the need to be more detailed about his history. His thoughts were far more focused on the ways in which he could include you in our family life. I doubt it even occurred to him that you didn't know all of his past… Jasper, has this been sitting between the two of you all these years?"

Jasper looked guilty, but I only sighed. "You should talk to him. Clear the air. He would welcome it, I'm sure. I know he was worried when you questioned yourself just after Bella's change."

"I felt that," my battle-scarred son admitted with a regretful sigh. "I just didn't think it was directed at me. He had plenty else to be worryin' about, that's for certain."

"That he did," I laughed lightly again, smiling at the ways in which Edward had grown up since finding Bella. Becoming a husband and father, and a man in his own right. My pride had been skyrocketing since my newest daughter had entered our lives and changed my first son so distinctly.

"Edward's really come into his own, hasn't he?" Jasper pondered quietly, probably spurred on by my emotions. "I never thought of him as immature. Hell, I thought of him as my older brother in some ways… but after the things he's been through lately, his past behavior seems so boyish. Since Bella came into his life, I've been lookin' at Edward like a _little_ brother more and more."

"He'd like that, I think," I said wistfully. "He's always had to be the responsible one. The past two years have given him a chance at the youth he lost."

"Strange how this life turns out," Jasper commented abruptly. "I thought it would get stagnant, but I never counted on Bella, I guess."

"No one did," I couldn't help saying.

Again we lapsed into silence, nature swirling around us and changing even as we remained unchanged. My thoughts seemed to follow the wild pattern of the wind, glancing on many topics, yet settling on none for long. Most revolved around the happiness of my family in the present time, but the fond past integrated itself almost seamlessly.

Jasper's deep voice finally broke the quiet with hardly a flutter of air. "Thank you. For tellin' me all of this."

"You're quite welcome," I nodded with a smile.

"And… thank you for what you did…" he haltingly continued.

"What I did?" I wondered, not remembering any immediate event that I had really had any great hand in.

"When we fought the wolves."

Oh. I swallowed with great difficulty at the reminder of that awful night when I not only worried over losing my family, but nearly _did_ lose the son beside me. The metallic screech of his flesh being torn apart still stung me, even this many days after the fact.

A hand on my shoulder thankfully shook me from my unhappy musings. I looked up to find Jasper watching me with an expression of gratitude and sentimentality that I did not feel worthy of.

"I don't know how to explain this," he started to speak, chewing his lip in absent concentration, "but the words Edward used to describe that situation were kind of close. A little mixed up, since my mind wasn't workin' at full force in that moment, but still... You did somethin' above and beyond a coven leader's normal actions. I knew what it meant, even then, but I couldn't name it until recently."

"What does it mean, then?" I asked him quietly, genuinely curious as to how he interpreted it.

After a moment, his dark eyes trained on mine and his hand still on my shoulder, Jasper gently answered, "It means you love me. I don't know why. Just like I'll never know why Alice loves me. But you do. When you defended me that night… and when you told Sam why you did it… Sam finally, truly saw that we were a family, not just a band of monsters. Because you proved that you saw me as more than just a coven member. You saw me as your son. And I'm ashamed to admit this, but… I didn't believe it until you told him so."

Tightness in my throat and the burning of phantom tears in my eyes were only the smallest of indicators as to how I felt after hearing my son's admission. Grief overwhelmed me that I had never fully proven my love towards Jasper. Yet joy and pride filled me that he now knew the truth and accepted it. While all I wanted to do was hold my son close and confirm his words, I remembered his reticence in such situations. In lieu of that, I firmly grasped his shoulder in a mirror image of his own posture.

To my utmost surprise, Jasper hesitated only a moment before embracing me as I had wished. Returning the gesture was so natural that I wondered why I had never done it before. I embraced my daughters many times throughout their lives. Emmett was so physical of a person that I often found myself the one _being_ hugged. And I hugged Edward often enough over the years, even when it made him slightly embarrassed. But Jasper and I had never initiated this kind of contact. It struck me as wasted time, but I relished the newfound bond.

Jasper and I hunted that night and the next day with great enthusiasm, generally living it up for the two days we were gone. Upon our return home we very rarely engaged in the more affectionate parent and child connections, but I could feel the trust shifting into place more and more every day.

I should have known something would come along to test that trust. Something was changing in our family, ever so subtly, as if the world were waiting for a monumental change to take place. A change in which we were the heart. In the months to come, with the threat of my former friend breathing down my neck and the imminent loss of my wife, family, and friends looming, I often found reason to doubt the newly born trust between Jasper and I.

Yet our one, heartfelt embrace would come to mind and I knew that my son and daughter would come back. Even if it meant Aro dispatched us all to God's kingdom, someday I would see them again.

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><p><span>AN: I said it reminded me of 'Melody of a Fallen Tree,' but not just because of the tree they sit on. :P The way their relationship and conversation builds as you read along, is reminiscent of the song's layering.

I see so many stories where Jasper is uncomfortable and distant toward Carlisle. Even downright hostile sometimes. It bugged me, so I decided to counteract it with a short tale. Thank you to all you wonderful people who highlight their relationship in your stories!

Please Review!


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